[stevem]

We(I) like to think when we confront the Ultimate Inquisitor that we have our affairs in order. I personally take solace in such stories as the "prodigal son" and "Let the one without sin cast the first stone." I take such solace because I think I am the prodigal son etc, etc. That will all come later.

For today all we(I) can do is take personal responsibility and atone as well as we(I) can for what we(I) do to others. To the best of my knowledge, Tookie never took responsibility for his murders. He did, however, atone early last Tuesday.

[Wicket]

atonement - phrasal verb FORMAL

to do something that shows that you are sorry for something bad that you did:

- The country's leader has expressed a wish to atone for his actions in the past.

atonement

noun {U} FORMAL

- He said that young hooligans should do community service as atonement for their crimes.

Mr. Williams didn't atone for his crime - he received the just punishment for it. Atonement would be making amends - if you vandalized someone's house, you put a new paint job on it. If you accidentally hurt someone, you pay for the medical bills and help them get groceries until they're well.

He certainly may have turned his life around at some point, and I hope he did. I'm reasonably prepared to meet Ted Bundy in heaven, based on Jim Dobson's interview and opinion of Bundy's authentic repentance and conversion. I may run into this guy as well. But the change in his life, if it occurred, does not change what he did, nor the punishment he deserved.